Late-Night Questions
by nootylicious
Summary: Ghirahim asks what happens at the end of his story.


"Princess."

Zelda whirled around to see Ghirahim standing at the door of her tent.

"Ghirahim. Good evening." She looked at him carefully, desperately hoping he wasn't here to stir up trouble. She really didn't need it at the moment, seeing as she was trying to work out a way of stamping out the bandit problem around Kakariko, as well as trying to relocate hundreds of refugees from the war with Cia. The current troubles meant that Zelda had a lot on her plate. That meant that anything that Ghirahim had to say was probably unwelcome.

"I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you."

Zelda was about to issue a reprimand, then realized what he had said and looked at him incredulously. Did he just... apologize? For bothering her? It was then that she realized all of the strange things about this situation. For one, he had walked up to the entrance of her tent and announced himself. Usually, Ghirahim loved nothing more than apparating right next to someone and frightening the wits out of them, or lying silently in wait. Secondly, he looked... troubled. Submissive. She had never seen him look this way. Something must be wrong. She shook her head, a little thrown.

"No, not at all. Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked carefully. _Are you all right_ was what she meant.

"I was just wondering... Yes, well. It's really nothing. I just wanted to know... Ah." He cut himself off and laughed sheepishly. "Heavens. I'm making an awful sight of myself, and in front of _you_ , no less. Please forgive me."

"Is everything all right, Ghirahim?" she asked, putting down her parchment in concern.

"Yes, yes. Everything's fine." He sighed, and shifted from one foot to the other, all traces of his smile disappearing. "Well, I suppose I'll just come out with it. I was hoping you could tell me what happens to us."

Zelda looked cautiously at him. "What happens... to you?"

"Yes. Us. Well, _me_ , specifically." He chuckled humourlessly. "I can be a bit selfish sometimes. One of my few vices."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

He sighed, irritation bringing some of his usual attitude back. "Well. I thought you were supposed to be the bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom, princess, but it appears I'll simply have to spell it out for you. I want to know how my story ends."

"Ah."

"Yes, ah. I know you've read the scrolls. I want to know what happens to me at the end of the tale."

Zelda took a breath. Of course she had read the scrolls. Her nursemaid had read her the tale of the Goddess and her Hero as a bedtime story countless times. But the fact that it was truth didn't make it any easier for her to impart. Ghirahim sensed her hesitation and clucked his tongue, annoyance mounting.

"Don't beat about the bush, please, dear. I'm a big boy. I can take it."

She looked directly at him. His brash words were obviously a facade for the apprehension evident on his face. He both did and didn't want to know. She supposed he was asking out of sheer curiosity, but there was also a sense of dread in hearing her answer. There was no way of saving him from it.

"Where do you want me to start?" she asked.

He considered. "Well, the last I remember, I was on my way through the Gate of Time with none other than your good self."

She was a little curious at his mention of her earliest mortal incarnation, but pressed on. "Well, after the Demon Lord Ghirahim stole the Spirit Maiden away through the Gate of Time, the Hero quickly followed him."

"Naturally," Ghirahim nodded, clucking his tongue in slight irritation.

"However, he was too late. The Demon Lord managed to use the soul of the Goddess to resurrect Demise. The Demon Lord then fulfilled his purpose as both sword and sheath to Demise, and became his blade."

He smiled lightly. It was then that Zelda began to wonder if she should be telling him any of this. Looking at his face, though, she decided that he wasn't going to use this information against anyone.

"Demise turned to the Hero, and said, 'If you wish to destroy me, meet me for our final battle.' The Hero followed Demise to the realm he had created, and the two did battle." Afraid of what was coming next, Zelda trailed off.

Ghirahim looked irked again. "Don't stop there. Don't worry, you're a lovely storyteller."

"Are you sure you wish for me to continue?" she asked softly, and looked him directly in the eyes. He refused to take her meaning, and looked back at her, unflinching.

"Yes," he replied, rudely and a bit sarcastically.

She took another breath. "The two did battle, and Demise was defeated." She paused, not looking Ghirahim in the eye. He didn't say anything.

"After Demise's defeat, he swore he would be reincarnated and visit his wrath upon the descendants of the Hero and Goddess. The two remained on the surface, and together built the new land of Hyrule. The land grew, and flourished..." She trailed off again. She knew he didn't care about this part. The silence grew between them, deafening her.

"I see," he eventually spoke up. "So, we lose."

"Yes," she replied clearly. "You lose."

He chuckled. "Any mention in those old scrolls of what happens to me in particular?"

"It is long assumed that the Demon Sword was lost, along with Demise himself," she told him.

"Ah."

Zelda wanted to let him know that his fate wasn't wished by her, but couldn't summon the words. "I am sorry."

"And Bluebird?" he asked, ignoring her apology.

"Bluebird?"

"Bluebird. The Goddess Sword. My other half. Fi."

"The Spirit of the Goddess Sword locked herself into eternal slumber inside the sword, never to wake again," she told him, a bit surprised. She assumed he wouldn't really care. However, that didn't seem to be the case. He drew his mouth into a thin line.

"I had a feeling."

"Pardon me?"

"I had a feeling that Master and I would lose."

She smiled grimly. "What tipped you off?"

"Well. When he summoned me here to this timeline, I noticed that everything was a bit less... dead than I thought it would be." Ghirahim laughed again, utterly without humour or feeling. She gave him a wry smile. "I wasn't expecting that about Bluebird, though."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, she was a servant of the Goddess. Your servant. She was on the winning side. It doesn't really make sense that she'd get the same ending as me." He shrugged with the barest amount of energy. "I'd say it would be ironic, but it's just too sad for that."

"Her spirit lives on to this day," Zelda said, attempting to lighten Fi's situation.

"But not her conciousness," he said, looking straight at her.

She looked back at him for a while. "...No. Not her conciousness."

Ghirahim turned around and stared at the night sky. His expression was unreadable. "Thank you for telling me."

"It was my pleasure." Although it really wasn't. She felt awful, and desperately wished she had a way to change their fates. "Maybe, if I search through the scrolls, I could find a way of keeping you two he-"

"You haven't changed a bit," he cut across her.

"I'm sorry?"

"Well, your face hasn't. You look exactly the same as you did countless millenia ago. You've changed otherwise, though. You've grown." He turned and half-smiled at her.

She wasn't sure how to respond.

"The Hylia I know wouldn't try to save us. When I began to stray from her path, countless millenia ago, she just forged a new sword. One that didn't have any of my pesky emotions. Even then, she gave the new one just one purpose, and the will to die after she fulfilled that purpose. I suppose she learned, in a way." His gaze had been wandering a little, and he brought it back to Zelda. "But I think you're a better person than you were. Very much so."

That was unexpected. But she was happy he said that. She smiled, and bowed her head. She had seen a whole new side to her former enemy, and was humbled in doing so. She felt that she had learned. "I am honoured that you think so, Demon Lord Ghirahim."

"Ah!" he cried. The atmosphere was instantly dispelled, and she looked up in confusion.

"Are you all right? Did I say something odd?" she asked.

"Finally!" he cackled.

"I-I'm sorry?"

"Finally! Someone used my title! In reference to me! Finally, I am addressed with the respect I deserve!" He laughed to himself in glee. "Oh, dearest princess, you are _definitely_ my favourite incarnation. Wait until I tell Zant about this!"

With that, he apparated away in a puff of diamonds, his laughter echoing through the night.

"P-please, don't cause any trouble, Ghirahim!" she called after him in concern, but was given no reply. She sighed, and smiled. Maybe Ghirahim wasn't as bad as she originally thought. She was glad he had cheered up. Maybe they could forge an alliance- maybe even a _friendship_ during his stay in this period. With that thought in mind, Zelda returned to her strategies.

* * *

Ghirahim appeared in a tree outside of camp in a puff of his signature diamonds. He sat in its upper branches, watching the moon, with a ghost of his previous smile on his face. He inhaled the night air, and his smile widened. After a while, a tear forced its way out of the corner of his eye. It was followed by another, and another. Then, his makeup smudged, the Demon Lord broke down and wept.


End file.
